Thank you for all of your respones! I have hopefully kept her at bay, for at least a while. And if she and/or her husband come back trying to sell us or try to get us to join, I will just stick to my guns, not speak of reasons why, and then, if need be, ignore. Thanks again!

Uggghh, I have a friend who does this, too! As soon as I got to the part in your post where you sent her a nice, reasonable justification for not signing up to her business, I went 'NOOOOOO!! Don't do it!!!!!'

Yep, that was definitely your novice mistake, 'cause that's exactly where I went wrong. I have a close friend of many years who gets sucked in to just about every pyramid-scheme going . She honestly thinks that she is going to get rich doing thing. Her latest is some telecommunications thing, and she bugged the LIFE out of me about it until I politely told her just plain "NO". But while I was engaging with her in any way by discussing why I didn't want to use 'her' company, she was like a dog with a bone.

The problem is that the people who start these schemes - not your friends and relatives, but the people who are actually profiting here - have figured out long ago how to fleece people, and they train their victims how to do it too. And they even convince them that they're *helping* others by forcing them into these things.

The weak point many people have is that they're working under normal social rules, and the other person is using high-pressure sales rules. Unless you stop being nice and gentle and reasonable, they'll steamroll right over you, because they will not react to normal cues that you want them to stop.

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My cousin's memoir of love and loneliness while raising a child with multiple disabilities will be out on Amazon soon! Know the Night, by Maria Mutch, has been called "full of hope, light, and companionship for surviving the small hours of the night."

araigne

There are actually some great companies (like Mary Kay Cosmetics) that follow the basic pyramid structure, but their focus is on offering a quality product FIRST and foremost. If I were you I would defriend them, or at least block their posts and ignore their messages. For heaven's sake, don't engage them any further!

There are actually some great companies (like Mary Kay Cosmetics) that follow the basic pyramid structure, but their focus is on offering a quality product FIRST and foremost. If I were you I would defriend them, or at least block their posts and ignore their messages. For heaven's sake, don't engage them any further!

The trouble is that even the 'good' companies can have bad eggs in the upline - and a lot of people don't think Mary Kay is particularly good.

A lot of the people further down the chain in all pyramid sellers genuinely believe they are doing you a favour because that is what they have been taught. If you won't get involved, you are 'being negative' and should be either persuaded or cut from that person's life. They are coached in what to say to overcome any negativity so there is no point in engaging as every argument will have a comeback.

I do the same thing you did and explain my answer in a well thought out way assuming that surely the other person will get it. If I am having to give an explanation of something I already declined that person usually doesn't really seem to care. It's as if they must accomplish their goal of obtaining a certain answer no matter how they get there.

I am so frustrated with people putting me in the position to just say, "No thank you." Ugh, I feel your pain and am sorry I offer nothing but sympathy.

You don't mention any interaction with this couple other than their attempts to sell to you or get you to joining their latest MLM. Is there a reason you would keep them as facebook friends after all these attempts?

It's time to cull your FB Friends and either a) lose her or b) stick her on a friends list that is highly restricted.

Further, if you can find a gracious way to explain you would prefer to not be contacted regarding business or purchasing transactions, although you'd like to keep the 'acquaintanceship' then by all means, I believe it is time to tell her so.

I've had a few people in my life like that. Very frustrating.

That's a very good question and I guess I've recently been asking myself the same thing. We used to invite one another to baby showers and children's birthday parties, but that somehow, somewhere ended. We send one another Christmas cards, but we no longer see one another in person. We'll interact a bit on facebook, aside from their new business ventures - like commenting on photos and whatnot. But I guess none of us has "severed the ties". Perhaps that's the next step.

OP I didn't read the entire first post , because as a salesperson I didn't need to. Objects are things to be overcome....... can't afford it , well product X will save you twice it's price in only 36 months. Just say " I've looked at the information you sent. I'm not interested"

What didn't you like about wonder product

Friend I'm really not interested

But why Wonder product is great it will save the earth , feed homeless kittens , it balances you checkbook , cleans the windows while you sleep , etc etc etc .

Still not interested

repeat repeat

Don't you care about kittens, the earth , your checkbook and the filthy state of your windows?

NOPE , not buying it doesn't matter how many times you ask the answer will be no. (this is for a snotty sales person)

There are actually some great companies (like Mary Kay Cosmetics) that follow the basic pyramid structure, but their focus is on offering a quality product FIRST and foremost. If I were you I would defriend them, or at least block their posts and ignore their messages. For heaven's sake, don't engage them any further!

I have to disagree with you. MK is no different than any other MLM. That company nearly cost someone I know her home and her marriage. It certainly cost her all of her life savings. That is how MK is. And this person I know is not atypical.

There are actually some great companies (like Mary Kay Cosmetics) that follow the basic pyramid structure, but their focus is on offering a quality product FIRST and foremost. If I were you I would defriend them, or at least block their posts and ignore their messages. For heaven's sake, don't engage them any further!

I have to disagree with you. MK is no different than any other MLM. That company nearly cost someone I know her home and her marriage. It certainly cost her all of her life savings. That is how MK is. And this person I know is not atypical.

Do they have a product that I(or at least someone) would normally buy at the price if offered from a stranger?

Do they(anyone up chain or their spouses/parents/siblings) make a profit from training? and/or do they make more money selling the starer kits then selling to customers?

While I recommend just saying "I'm not intersted" it gets people off your back faster. It is perfectly potlie to ask to see the books of any person trying to sell you an opportunity/business . You can ask a person offering a restaurant for sale " what was your gross and net profits? On what item do you make the most profit?" and lot of other questions. You can ask the exact same questions of a person offering a MLM..............how many people have you signed up? how many are still with you after a year? how much do you make from sales ? how much do you make when a person attends a seminar? how much profit is in a sample kit, for you ? how many cold contact emails/phone calls do you make before you make a sale?how much time did that take? how much do you spend on gas getting to display parties, how much is spent on refreshments? exactly what was your profit last year and exactly how much time did you and/or your spouse/child invest?" These are rude questions to ask a FRIEND these are perfectly appropriate questions to ask someone SELLING you a business. I ran a business I could answer any of these or 100 other questions in 2 minutes.

I do actually ask these questions when someone tries to involve me in a MLM I almost never get answers. I also never get asked twice. What I get is " there is unlimited potential". The worst of these MLM exists in part because people are too "polite" to question their presenters , how much do you make? is a legitmate question to anyone selling you a business and it should be answered with I make X not Bob the founder makes Y or Mary whose 10 levels up makes Z

<snip> OP I didn't read the entire first post , because as a salesperson I didn't need to. Objects are things to be overcome....... can't afford it , well product X will save you twice it's price in only 36 months. </snip>

EvilNorrina wants to respond, "oh, well, in that case, go ahead and give me product X now and I'll pay you for it in 18 months!"

I've actually been to sales seminars where they tell you to always have an answer for "objections."

As in,

"Thanks, but I'm not interested because of X.""Oh, but if you look at X this way, it's really a positive thing, because in comparison with Y, blah blah blah..."

Giving reasons just gives them more fodder to argue about it.

"No thank you" is enough.

For the record, I never adopted the corny, pushy sales tactics recommended in the seminar. It would irritate me to have them used on me so I wouldn't use them on someone else.

Very true, but successful salespeople would never get anywhere if they had no way of countering objections.

"That's too expensive" - they will tell you what you will actually save/gain profit in the long term. "No one reads that publication" re media advertising - they will give you the figures as to how many people do in fact read it.

Of course, only a minority of people are cut out for heavy-duty sales. But for those who are - they will generally not settle for a "sorry, not interested" the first time. The second time - most polite salespeople will.